Cart abandonment sits somewhere around 70% on average. Not all of that is fixable — some people were never going to buy. But in the audits we run, we keep seeing the same handful of friction points. Fix those and you're not "optimising checkout." You're literally recovering revenue that's already sitting in the funnel.

1. Forced account creation

Making people create an account before they can pay is still surprisingly common. Every extra field is a chance to drop. Guest checkout isn't a nice-to-have; it's the baseline. Offer account creation after the order, with a one-click option using the email they just typed. We've seen checkout conversion jump 12–18% just from adding a proper guest path.

2. Unclear progress and security signals

People need to know how many steps are left and that the page is safe. A simple "Step 2 of 3" plus visible trust badges (cards, padlock, "secure checkout") removes a chunk of anxiety. One brand we worked with had a single long page with no progress indicator; adding a minimal step bar and a single security line lifted completion by about 9%.

3. Shipping and cost surprises at the end

Nothing kills trust like a total that's way higher than expected. Show shipping options and any taxes as early as possible — ideally on cart or the first checkout step. If you can't show exact shipping until address is entered, show a range or "from £X." Surprises in the final step are where we see a lot of bails.

4. Too many fields (and the wrong ones)

Every field is a decision. Do you really need a "company name" for a B2C checkout? Or a phone number when you're not going to call? Audit every field: if it's not required for fulfilment or fraud, strip it or move it post-purchase. We've cut 5–7 fields on some checkouts and seen 6–11% more completions.

5. Weak or absent error handling

When something fails — card declined, address not found — the message matters. Generic "Something went wrong" or a tiny red line under one field makes people give up. Inline, clear errors ("Card declined. Try another card or contact your bank.") plus one-click retry keep a chunk of those would-be drop-offs in the flow.

6. Mobile checkout that feels like desktop

On mobile, big tap targets, fewer steps, and autofill-friendly fields (correct input types and names) make a huge difference. Pin the key action (Pay or Continue) so it's always visible. We've seen mobile conversion lag desktop by 30–40% on brands that didn't optimise; closing that gap often adds double-digit revenue.

7. No post-abandonment hook

Some people will leave no matter what. The win is bringing them back. Email and SMS recovery flows that fire within an hour, with the cart and a clear CTA, routinely pull back 5–15% of abandoners. If you're not running at least one automated sequence, you're leaving a lot on the table.

None of this is theory. These are the levers we hit on almost every checkout audit. Prioritise by traffic and impact: fix guest checkout and progress first, then trim fields and tighten errors. After that, mobile and recovery. You'll be surprised how much of that 70% is actually addressable.